RE: [ft-l] Tent Sites

It's all in how you read the ground. I could tell you, but I'd rather show you.
NOLS tells us to watch out for the "3 W's: wind, water, widow-makers." You
also need to look for-- and avoid:
-- those subtle depressions in the landscape
-- areas where leaves and other flotsam have collected and swirled (ponding)
-- areas that are totally clean of leaves and flotsam (flash flooding)
Areas to pitch in:
-- above evident "high water marks"
-- where ground vegetation and flotsam appear relatively undisturbed
-- on high sides of gentle slopes (gravity can be less of an annoyance than a
soggy sleeping bag)
-- in prairies and meadows, park on top of thick, high grass-- it's
impact-resistant and serves as elevation, drainage and cushion
Another tip--
-- a vapor barrier ground cloth under your tent. Visqueen is strong,
lightweight and cheap. It should be cut about two inches SHORTER than your tent
floor dimensions all around, meaning none of it sticks out from under the tent.
I see a lot of people using groundcloths much larger than their tents, with the
object to keep dirt out of the tent, BUT what it really does is serve as a
collector for water draining off the fly, funneling it onto the groundcloth and
under the tent floor. The vapor barrier also keeps your tent fabric & sleeping
bag/pad from sucking up any ground moisture, too.
Hope this helps!
Pam Hale
SwampLily
-----Original Message-----
From: Bluetrail@aol.com [SMTP:Bluetrail@aol.com]
Sent: Wednesday, 18 November, 1998 10:59 PM
To: ft-l@backcountry.net
Subject: [ft-l] Tent Sites
For those of you gloating about your superior ability to situate your tent so
that it stays dry, how about passing along this hard-earned wisdom? Or are
you holding out for an hour-long workshop at the annual meeting?
Joan
bluetrail@aol.com
* From the Florida Trail Mailing List | http://www.backcountry.net *
* From the Florida Trail Mailing List | http://www.backcountry.net *
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